Nostalgic Nights
by SilverXxWind
Summary: Sometimes all it takes to find a little love is a power outage, lack of a house key and a very, very low temperature. Gary swears it's not his fault and that he's a better guy than Leaf makes him out to be. Will Leaf be able to see that maybe, just maybe, he could be right for once? LGS. Oneshot. Implies CS, PS and IS.


**Author's Note: Hey everyone! I'm very proud and excited to (finally) post this as my first story on Fanfiction! I've been working on this for a while, and decided it's finally time to put it out for you guys to see. Special thank you to LeafxGreenx3 and other friends of mine for reading this, giving me advice and helping with edits. So, without further ado, enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything, with the exception of the plot.**

* * *

"I don't want to see Gary again," Leaf said quietly while looking out the car window.

Dawn smirked. "Relax, chica. Gary won't be there, he's working tonight."

"You're sure?"

"Positive," Dawn said with a reassuring smile. Misty, May, Dawn and Leaf were on their way to Paul, Ash, Gary and Drew's house.

"I don't understand why we've been visiting them so much lately. If you guys want to see your boyfriends that badly, then you don't need to drag me along with you. Especially not tonight when I'm going to be – wait. There are six of you?" An incredulous look passed over her face. "Seventh wheeling. I'm going to be seventh wheeling."

"Is that even a thing?" May said.

Leaf shot May a pleading look and the sapphire-eyed girl raised her hands in surrender.

Dawn raised an eyebrow in amusement and looked back at Leaf from the passenger seat. "Are you saying that you'd rather have Gary there for company?"

"No. I'm saying that I'd rather be at home, wrapped up in blankets and scrolling through my Tumblr feed."

May smiled almost apologetically and grabbed the brunette's hand.

Five minutes later they arrived at the house and were greeted by Ash, who kindly let them in, but not without grabbing Misty by the waist and pecking her on the nose. Leaf forced a smile at the two before taking off her coat and making her way into the kitchen. She frowned slightly when she saw who was there.

"Well hey there, Leafy." Gary shot her a wink.

Leaf narrowed her eyes at him. "I thought you weren't supposed to be here." Gary chuckled and stuck his hands in his jean pockets.

"I live here, Leaf."

"Dawn said you were working tonight," Leaf said as her expression twisted into one of confusion. Gary raised his eyebrows at her. What was Dawn talking about? After taking a moment to comprehend what was happening, doors slammed upstairs, and footsteps sprinted down the stairs and through the foyer.

"Quick! Everyone out!" Startled, Leaf ran into the hallway only to see her friends rushing out the front door. The last person to leave was Drew, who winked at her before slamming the door shut and locking it from the outside.

"What are you doing?" Leaf said.

Even though she knew they couldn't hear her, she ran to the front door and tried to open it, but to no avail. She continued to fiddle with the doorknob. "Come on! This isn't funny!"

"Actually, it's pretty amusing to me."

Leaf turned around and glared at Gary, trying to intimidate him. She couldn't believe that he'd gone to so much trouble just to get a rile out of her.

"I can't believe all of you planned this out," she said. Why would her best friends do this to her? Leaf was very well aware of the fact that they had been trying to set her and Gary up for a while now. There had been a few too many occasions in the last couple of months where both her and Gary somehow, _'coincidentally,'_ ended up together alone - although nothing out of sequence ever happened. That being said, Misty, May and Dawn obviously didn't let their previous failures stop them from trying. So, just to frustrate them, Leaf always made a point to act completely oblivious towards their failed attempts at hooking them up.

"Don't blame me, I didn't know anything about this," Gary said as he raised his hands in defense, pleading innocence.

Leaf stood there and spent a good minute just looking at him, searching his eyes for any signs of a lie. However, she found none. She crossed her arms with a huff.

"Can we get out?" She stood up on her toes and eagerly looked past his shoulder for any signs of a house key.

"Don't know." He fished around in his pockets, but came out empty handed. Gary let out a frustrated sigh. "They must have taken my keys. We're locked in."

"Perfect," Leaf muttered. She exhaled a deep breath as she brought her hand up to her forehead, thinking about what they could possibly do to get out of their little predicament. Just as she lifted her head up towards his to make a suggestion about what they could do, all of the lights shut off.

"What the-"

Leaf closed her eyes, willing the lights to turn back on. _The power is not out, the power is not out. I am not stuck alone in a house with Gary. Just breathe, Leaf. Gary won't try anything on you- how can he even see you if it's dark? Wait-no, it's not dark because the power's not out. No way in a million years is the power-_

"Leaf, the power's out."

Leaf opened her eyes and saw nothing but pure and utter darkness. "Great," she said, sarcasm oozing from her voice. She could tolerate being alone with Gary for a little while, but things were a little more complicated this time to say the least.

"It'll probably be back on in a couple hours," Gary said. "Let's just try to make the best of it," he compromised.

"Well this is fantastic," Leaf muttered, completely disregarding what Gary just said. "We're locked in a house with no power." She tiredly massaged her temples.

Gary smiled gently at how cute Leaf was when she was stressed. He actually didn't mind this - he appreciated what his friends were doing for him. They all knew he had a major crush on Leaf. Gary wished that Leaf saw him as something more than just a teenaged heartthrob. How on earth could she think that when he'd made it so obvious that he liked her? His dark eyes became sad at the thought.

 _Leaf, why can't you see that I only have eyes for you?_

* * *

With the power outage, Gary went to get some flashlights and blankets for him and Leaf. They didn't know how long it would be out, and the house was already starting to get cold without heating. While he was doing that, Leaf called May. After the fourth ring, a soft voice answered the phone.

" _Hello?_ _"_

"What the heck, May? Locking me in a house with Gary during a blackout?"

" _Oh, hey Leaf, how's it going?"_ May smiled on the other end. She was currently back at her house with everyone, cuddling on the couch with Drew. They had all agreed that so far, things were going well. They'd managed to get Leaf and Gary alone, and there was no way for the two to get out of it. Not to mention that Castelia City was graced with a power outage twenty minutes ago. It only added excitement for the culprits of the plan.

Leaf chewed on her fingernails in a frustrated manner. She called for answers, not idle chit chat. "I'm serious, May."

May sighed. " _Look, I'm sorry, but Dawn was the one who came up with the idea, and once we all heard it we had a hard time saying no. We didn't even know there was going to be a power outage."_ May paused for a few seconds. " _You are so oblivious, you know that? We've been trying to get you two together for months."_

Leaf rolled her eyes. She definitely wasn't as oblivious as everyone else thought. Still, she chose not to let on about knowing anything.

"This wasn't the way to do it. You can't force two people to like each other." Leaf's voice grew smaller as she looked at the ground. "It just doesn't work like that."

" _I know it doesn't."_

"Then why are you –"

" _Because it's so blatantly obvious."_

Leaf's eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "What?"

May sighed. _"_ _You refuse to admit it to us, and maybe even to yourself, but I know you, Leaf. I can see right through you."_

"And that's supposed to make me feel good?" Leaf gaped.

" _Nope. You might be coy as heck, but you can't hide how you feel. At least not from me."_

"Would it make sense if I told you that I don't know how I feel?" Leaf said.

" _Do you think that I never had the same mixed feelings about Drew?"_

"I'm not saying that. I know that you two are sometimes polar opposites. I'm just – I don't know. I'm so unsure of myself. Sometimes I think back to when we were kids and I remember that Gary is still Gary, you know? He's just grown up and, only to a certain extent, matured," she said with a roll of her eyes. "Then other times I realize he's changed so much that it infuriates me."

" _Of course it does. Memories and the feelings we have attached to them get messy sometimes."_

"Or all the time."

May chuckled. _"_ _Yes, that's true as well."_ She paused for a moment, and then spoke with one of the gentlest voices that Leaf had ever heard. _"_ _Do you think I didn't go through the same thing when I started dating Drew?"_ May said. Leaf bit her lip.

" _Some days I swore I didn't want to be anywhere near the cabbage headed moron, and other times I felt so compelled to be around him. Love really is sloppy, but at the end of the day, it's good. Not to mention that we wouldn't have gotten together if you guys never set us up."_ At this, Drew looked at May with a smirk and pressed a gentle, loving kiss to her forehead. She looked down at their intertwined hands resting on her lap and she smiled. May whispered something to Drew that Leaf didn't catch, and left the room.

" _I'm alone now. You can talk to me, okay? And I mean really talk. Life-chats style."_

"Do I have to?"

" _Yes. Now go."_

Leaf pouted and closed her tired forest eyes, but nonetheless succumbed to her friend's request.

"We don't have a lot in common anymore. Growing up, Gary and I always did the dumbest things. Stupid pranks, having sleepovers, building forts with blankets and pillows…" Leaf bit her lip as a sad wave of nostalgia came over her. "I miss it. I guess we kind of split paths once we became adolescents. He became girl crazy and I just did my own thing. It's still that way," Leaf said quietly.

" _Do you think that's why you two always butt heads?"_

"Possibly? I don't even know where his arrogance came from. It appeared out of nowhere. I mean, Gary always did get a bit cocky when we were kids, but now it's way over inflated. Sometimes it gets to be too much for me and then I go off like a firework."

" _So… You do miss him?"_ May's voice was gentle, but it was also laced with hope and excitement. _"_ _For sure?"_

"Uhm… _"_ Leaf glanced at her feet and bit her lip. "Yeah."

May's eyes narrowed in anticipation. _"_ _Do you think that maybe you also miss what you never had with him?"_

Leaf opened her mouth in surprise, but for a moment no words came out. She knitted her eyebrows together. "May?"

" _Don_ _'t kill me for saying this, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's true."_ May was treading fearsome waters, and it sent shivers through all of Leaf's nerves down to her core. _"_ _You and Gary grew up together, and now you feel like he's practically a stranger. It's okay to be attached to him, Leaf."_ Leaf closed her eyes. Despite the fact that her mind was screaming at her to deny it, the more sensible part told it to shut up. She could trust May.

"It baffles me that you seem to know more about my own feelings than I do."

A soft smile pulled at the corners of May's mouth. _"_ _So you finally admit it. Besides, the only reason any of us could tell was because you always get so worked up when he flirts with you. Of course we'd assume there are feelings attached."_

"Woah there, don't get ahead of yourself. I didn't confirm anything… It's a 'maybe,' okay? Just a maybe. So…" Leaf drawled. "Now that we've got that figured out, will you please come back to the house and let me come home? I think we've made enough progress for tonight."

" _Nice try. The power is out here too, you know. I think you should spend some time with Gary. It won't be as bad as you think. Maybe you can turn that 'maybe' into a definite yes. Just - give it a chance, okay?"_

Leaf sat silently for a few seconds in thought. May had a point, and she couldn't argue with it. She wouldn't necessarily say that she had romantic feelings for Gary, but she always acknowledged the fact that there was something more than friendship between the two of them. Continuing to endlessly ponder the thought, she bid May goodbye and ended the call.

Leaning her back against the couch, Leaf put a hand to her forehead and let out a quiet groan. How come nothing made sense? Gary always flirted with her. But almost every other week at school she would see him with his arms around different girls. The thought of her feelings being irrelevant to him irritated her.

She missed the days when they were best friends, young innocent children who thought dating was gross because you could catch cooties. She missed the old Gary; the one who held her hand as a kid, the one who was sweet and called her "Leafy" affectionately and not flirtatiously.

 _That Gary is long gone now,_ she reminded herself sadly.

"I couldn't find much with only one flashlight, but I did find a blanket and a sleeping bag," Gary said as he entered the room. Leaf scrunched her nose.

"Can't we sleep in the bedrooms?"

"They're all locked."

"Even yours?" she asked incredulously.

Gary nodded and Leaf let out a small growl. This really was tenacity at it's finest.

"You take the blanket. It'll be warmer," said Gary.

 _Maybe he hasn't changed so much. I guess he is still somewhat thoughtful._

"Okay. Can I take this couch? It's comfortable."

"Sure, I'll take the other one." Gary put his sleeping bag on the other couch. Leaf sat still, observing his movements, when she remembered something.

"Wait – isn't it only eight o'clock? Are we really going to go to sleep this early?" Leaf asked. Gary turned around to face her and shrugged.

"I don't know. What else is there to do? It's already getting dark outside and I am kind of worn out. I say we call it a day."

"Alright. Can I have my blanket now? It's getting cold in here."

Gary debated something in his mind for a moment and he smirked as he made his decision. "Sure," he said as he smoothly made his way over to her. When he reached her he bent down to her level and put his face close to hers, slowly wrapping the thick blanket around her slim body. Their close proximity made Leaf blush as his warm, minty breath tickled her lips.

When he finished wrapping the blanket around her, his hands lingered on her arms, not moving as he continued to study her face. After a few seconds she gained enough courage to look him straight in the eyes. When she did, she found him staring at her, which only made her cheeks redder. Gary noted this appreciatively and smirked at her before pulling away.

"Goodnight, Leaf," he said.

"Night Gary," Leaf said whilst avoiding his gaze. She snuggled into the couch and after a deep breath, she closed her eyes.

Five minutes later Leaf opened her eyes. She couldn't sleep. She wasn't sure whether it was because it was so early or if it was because she was cold. She had a hunch it was the latter. Leaf shivered slightly as her eyes darted back and forth across the ceiling. Slowly, May's words from their earlier conversation began to replay themselves over and over in her head, like a broken record.

" _Do you think that maybe you also miss what you never had with him?"_

Leaf had never considered this before. Sure, she knew that deep down she did miss their friendship. But she'd never taken the time to think about if she still wanted to be friends with him now, despite their differences. And if they were barely friends, then where was May getting the idea that they could be more than that? Sometimes Leaf felt genuinely dumbstruck by her friends' ideas.

She glanced over at Gary's unmoving form and her forest eyes fluttered with curiosity. Suddenly, somewhere deep inside her chest, she felt a longing to be closer to him. Leaf rapidly averted her eyes back to the ceiling and she tried to forget the unsettling feeling that lingered in her chest. Alongside the fact that it was unsettling, though, there was also a hint of excitement that sent sparks through her chest all the way down to her feet. And, in that moment, Leaf sharply inhaled as she realized that she _did_ want Gary. She wanted him back. She wanted what they were missing out on – but she didn't know exactly _what_ they were missing out on.

Gary wasn't sleeping either. He was deep in thought, staring at the ceiling with his arm propped underneath his head. He couldn't stop thinking about Leaf. How pretty she looked just moments ago with her cheeks flushed under his heated gaze. He loved her eyes the most though - those dark green eyes that always managed to mesmerize him.

Moments later, Leaf peered over at Gary. He felt her stare and turned his head to gaze back at her.

"Can't sleep?" Gary said. Surprised that he caught her stare, she rigidly nodded in response. "Are you cold?"

Leaf hesitated. Sure, that was partly it, but her mind was swirling with more important issues. Not to mention that if she did tell him she was cold, he would likely play 'hero' and give her his sleeping bag. It'd be a sweet gesture, but Gary would freeze without it. She answered with a quiet 'no', but her body proved her wrong with a shiver. Gary continued to look at her. Leaf could barely make out his disbelieving expression, but she saw it was there.

"I'm not stupid, Leaf." He abruptly stood up. "Move over."

Leaf shot up into a sitting position.

"No. I am not sleeping with you," she said. Gary smirked at her choice of words. Leaf mentally repeated her words and her cheeks turned crimson with realization. She glared at him. "You know what I meant. I refuse to sleep next to you."

"I'm not going to let you freeze, and if you think I am, then you really are an idiot. Move over."

 _Crap,_ Leaf thought. She could barely sort out her thoughts now. Who knew what would happen if she let herself be in even closer proximity to Gary. She crossed her arms defiantly and jutted her small chin out at him. "No."

"It's freezing in here. One blanket isn't enough to keep you warm," he argued as his shoulders slumped.

Dangit. He did have a point. "Fine," she huffed as she made room for Gary on the couch.

Leaf found it kind of awkward as Gary was getting settled in next to her. The couch they were on was so small that his body was fully pressed against hers. It made her tense all over. Leaf turned over to face him. When she did, he wrapped a muscular arm around her waist and pulled her close to him.

"What are you doing?" she said, slightly alarmed.

"Keeping you warm."

Leaf nodded reluctantly and settled herself more comfortably into his embrace against his chest. Once she got over the awkwardness of the situation she was surprised to think that she didn't mind it that much. Gary provided a lot of body heat, and listening to his heartbeat soothed her. Curiously, she moved her head closer to where his heart was. Gary raised his eyebrows at her, but didn't say anything. He smiled and closed his eyes, content with holding the calm girl in his arms.

Leaf bit her tongue as she listened to the sound of his heartbeat. She didn't want to just give in to him. Not like this. Not when she was still so unsure of everything between them. She needed answers. But Leaf wasn't sure how to go about it. Should she be straight up and blunt? Or was it better for her to be generic and hope that he caught on? Taking a deep breath, Leaf decided to just say what she felt like saying. She would take each moment as it came.

"Gary? Can I ask you something?"

Gary opened his eyes and looked at her resting head. "Go for it."

"Do you miss our childhood?"

"Huh? Um, yeah, I do."

"Because I've been doing some thinking and I realized that… I realized that I miss you. A lot more than I should," Leaf added softly. She sat up and stared at Gary. He looked stunned at her confession and regarded her with a strange look in his eyes. "We got along great when we were kids. When did we grow apart? It's like we lost our ability to connect with each other."

"I'm not sure," Gary muttered as he shifted awkwardly in his position.

"I'm serious," Leaf said with wide eyes. "I want to know why we stopped being such good friends.

Gary was shocked. Was this the same Leaf who'd been ticked at the idea of spending time with him? The same Leaf who now, all of a sudden, wanted to be best friends again? He knew why they'd grown apart, and it was his fault. He did want Leaf back. A lot. But now that they were actually getting closer to that, he couldn't help but feel a little unnerved by it. Leaf could actually be his friend again. Or, if he took the reigns and steered in the right direction, they could be more. Just like he'd always wanted.

Gary didn't even have to contemplate the thought. He knew what he wanted, and he really had nothing to lose at that point. He felt his cool and composed demeanor overtake him as he always did with the ladies. Though a small smirk pulled at his lips, he still couldn't help but feel nervous. Because this was Leaf, and this time it actually counted.

"Do you remember when we started growing apart?" Gary asked her. He bit the inside of his cheek as he awaited her response.

"It was quite a while ago. Back when we were eleven or twelve."

"Do you remember anything that changed about either of us at that time?"

"Nothing really changed with me. Not anything significant. Although I do remember you started dating a lot. Or whatever your version of dating was at the time," Leaf said as a teasing smile pulled at the corners of her mouth. Gary stared at Leaf with a serious expression on his face, and the smile faded from Leaf's lips as she slowly began to understand what he was getting at. "We grew apart when you started liking girls," Leaf said with widened eyes as the realization dawned upon her.

"When I started liking you," Gary said slowly, almost unsure of himself.

Leaf sat there with her forest green eyes open wide, and her mouth slightly ajar. Not moving at all. Gary's words rang loud in her head, and she could have sworn her heart stopped the moment she'd heard them. She clenched and unclenched her fingers as she tried to force words out of her mouth. "What?"

Gary, relieved she'd finally said something, tilted his head. "You know what I said."

"Why didn't you ever tell me?"

"You should know, Leaf. It happens in all the movies. I didn't want to ruin our friendship."

"Go on," Leaf prodded.

Gary sighed. "I'd had crushes before. Small ones. So when I started liking you I thought the feelings would go away. But that didn't happen. It got to the point where I always felt nervous around you, so I kind of turned into an ass."

"Kind of?" Leaf said with raised eyebrows. Gary pouted.

"Hey, I'm not that bad. At least not as bad as that creep who practically stalked you last year." Leaf internally shuddered as she remembered the guy who had no problem proclaiming his feelings for her on a daily basis.

"If you liked me so much, then why did you date anyone but me?"

"That was mostly an attention scam," Gary admitted. "I had a hard time being around you because of how nervous I got. So I gave my attention to other girls to try to get your attention. But that didn't work. So, once we grew apart, it just became a habit."

Leaf felt taken aback by his sudden confession. But she felt more taken aback by how she felt about his confession. Her heart hammered with excitement and butterflies fluttered deep in her belly.

"So you – this whole time?" Leaf stuttered.

"Yeah," Gary said with a nod of his head. He bit his lip and stared at her intensely as he awaited a response. At this point he didn't care if it was good or bad. As long as he got something.

Leaf could sense the longing she'd felt earlier begin to resurface. Only this time, it was fiercer. Telling her that she needed to do something and she needed to do it now. It only took her a second to make up her mind, and with that Leaf met Gary's intense stare with a serious gaze of her own.

"Come here," she whispered.

Both suspicious and curious, Gary slowly sat up and leaned slightly towards Leaf. She gently cupped his face with both hands and averted her gaze to his lips. Ever so slowly, she leaned into him and he caught her lips in a soft, gentle kiss. It lasted for only a few moments before she pulled away from him ever so tantalizingly. She felt Gary smile against her mouth before she broke the kiss completely, and she couldn't help but smile a small grin in response.

He kissed her on the cheek, and she pulled him into her warm embrace. They stood still for a few minutes, just breathing in the scent of the other and remembering what they'd missed over the last few years. Gary leaned back, pulling Leaf down with him as he laid down. Leaf placed her head over his chest again and thought about the moments that had just transpired between them.

Still with Leaf in his arms, Gary's breathing eventually evened out and Leaf could tell that he had fallen asleep. Leaf focused on the sound of his heartbeat. _Thump, ba-dump. Thump, ba-dump._ She laid there, not moving. Listening to the very thing that kept Gary alive made her heart swell with affection for him, and she held onto him tighter because of it.

The sound of it only made her realize that Gary was just as much of a human as she was. Sure, he was a bit of a player and he made mistakes, but didn't everyone? The thought made Leaf realize that no matter what happened, he would always be the same Gary he was as a kid. The only thing that really changed about him? Leaf finally understood that it was how picky he was about who got to see his tender, caring side. A side hardly anyone ever truly got to see.

And yet here Leaf was, experiencing just how sweet Gary could be. She gently stroked the arm that was holding her waist. In his sleep, Gary shivered beneath her touch. Leaf smiled.

Placing her hand over his, she allowed herself to be lulled to sleep by the beating of his heart.

* * *

Leaf woke up again in the middle of the night. It was pitch black, save for the bit of moonlight streaming in the room through the window. She guessed it was sometime past midnight, maybe one or two in the morning. She lifted her head off of Gary's chest and looked up at his face. He looked so innocent when he was asleep, with his mouth slightly ajar and his spiky hair even messier than usual. Leaf smiled when she noticed that he still had the same boyish freckles on his cheeks he had as a kid. She brought her hand up to stroke his face, savouring the feeling of his skin.

Throughout the night Leaf realized Gary made her feel something she couldn't describe, and those feelings were finally beginning to surface. She wasn't scared or nervous like before, though. Instead, she found it completely exhilarating.

Sensing her touch, Gary tiredly opened his eyes.

"Leaf?" he murmured and placed his own hand upon hers where it rested on his cheek, and he smiled. It wasn't sly or teasing. It was a genuine, happy smile. The corners of Leaf's mouth went up at the sight. And in that very moment she knew that she'd fallen head over heels for Gary.

"Hey," she said to him softly and rubbed his cheek with her thumb. "Thanks for keeping me warm."

"Of course." He hesitated for a moment. "Listen, Leaf. I know you think I'm a womanizer and that sometimes I'm obnoxious and insensitive, but you're my best friend, and you always have been," Gary said with sincerity in his eyes. "We may have grown apart over the years, but it doesn't change the fact that I would do anything for you," he told her truthfully.

Leaf felt her heart soar. "You're so cheesy, you know that?" She laughed softly. He playfully rolled his eyes in response. "Thank you," she said again with a chuckle. Smiling, she leaned her head towards his and surprised him with a small peck on the lips. Gary pouted.

"What kind of a kiss was that, Leafy? That wasn't even long enough for me to kiss you back," he said. "Let me teach you what a real kiss is," he said seductively, to which she rolled her eyes in response. Nonetheless, she closed them, expecting to feel Gary's lips on hers any second.

However, instead of being kissed, she was mercilessly tickled on her rib cage and she burst out laughing.

"Gary! Gary – stop!" she screamed, laughing as he continued to torture her. Gary laughed with her, continuing to dance his fingers along her body.

"I don't think so, Leafy," he said, drawling out her nickname. "This is what you get for being a lousy kisser."

In a feeble attempt to get him to stop tickling her, Leaf lifted her head up and pressed her lips against his. This time the kiss was more passionate, with longing flying between the two. Gary held her chin in his thumb and forefinger, cupping her cheek with his other hand. His kiss was hungry and only slightly forceful as he savoured the taste of the lips he'd yearned to kiss for many years.

Maybe it was because Gary sped up the pace of the kiss, or maybe it was because the experience was absolutely breathtaking on so many levels. Either way, Leaf was out of air, and she reluctantly pulled away from him, breaking their kiss.

"How's that for a kiss?" she said, breathing heavily.

Gary smirked. "Much better."

Leaf sent a teasing smirk back at him and only realized how tired she was when she yawned.

"You're tired already?" Gary asked her. "Huh. Well, I do tend to wear out the female population, if you know what I mean."

Leaf smacked him lightly on the arm. "It's two in the morning, give me a break." Gary laughed.

"Goodnight, Leaf." He pressed a kiss to her forehead. Leaf smiled and snuggled deeper into his embrace for the second time that night. Closing her eyes, she whispered 'goodnight' and was sent off into dreamland. Gary smiled softly and stroked her hair lovingly.

 _Do you understand now, Leaf? I've loved you since day one. You just had a hard time seeing it._

* * *

"They are so cute!" Dawn whispered loudly.

Unknown to Leaf and Gary, the power came back on in the middle of the night well after they'd fallen asleep, and the group made their way over in the morning to make sure the two were alright.

"I know, right?" May said as she took another picture of the sleeping lovebirds on her phone. She smirked as she looked at the picture. "I'm going to show this at their wedding." Drew looked over at her.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, June. I'm sure Leaf has blackmail material against you as well." He did have a point. Leaf was smart and coy – she could get her hands on things that no one could even dream of. If May ever showed anyone those photos of Leaf, Leaf would probably get friendly revenge by hitting her with something twice as hard. May stuck her tongue out at Drew.

"They really are adorable." Misty smiled wistfully as she held her camera up to her face and took another picture of them, the flash going off.

At that moment Leaf groggily opened her eyes and saw six cell phones and cameras, all snapping pictures of her and Gary. She laid there with a confused look on her face for a split second until she clued into what was happening.

"GUYS!"

* * *

 **A/N: So, how did you guys like it? I'd love to write more this summer, and I'm trying to start a legitimate career in writing, so this will be great for practice and possibly even building a profile of some sort. Please review and let me know what you think! I'd love to see lots of concrit so I can improve for future works.**

 **Take care, lovelies.**

 **~Nicole**


End file.
